Kissed: Sensuality in Gay Art Hardcover – Illustrated, September 1, 2010

yup, this is one of those books that gets your attention right off the bat! Of course there is also some very, very interesting reading for those that get easily bored with highly erotic and sensual photos.

Really love the collection of many spontaneous shots! The couples in the book do show great chemistry

Perhaps that is true in CASABLANCA or in the song by Herman Hupfeld circa 1931, but here in this highly sensuous coffee table book edited by Stephan Niederwieser there is a lot more to a kiss than a `just'! Bruno Gmünder Verlag books always push the envelope, but this book focuses not on the physicality of encounters of the body, but instead draws attention to the variety of ways the kiss can happen. The art is by photographers of the highest rank in the Bruno Gmünder echelon and each in his own style brings together lips and faces and, yes, at times more of the bodies providing a complete spectrum of bussing.The books opens with a sly Foreword by Jeffrey Essmann who offers lessons in the erotica of the kiss, including of course that shy first kiss, the kiss of love, and the kiss of passion. And then the book bounces into 260 pages of color photographs by the likes of Jeff Palmer, David Vance, Justin Munroe, Howard Roffman, Sandor Bross, Ed Freeman, River Betancourt, Mark Grantham, Jay Diers, Jay Jorgenson, Joseph Sinclair, David Rothwell, Frank Louis - 48 in all. It is multiracial, varying body types, public and private, and in all, it is a collection that will be returned to many times. The models vary in type but every one of them is a winner. This is a very successful book, audience directed for now, but with the gradual acceptance of movies such as `A Single Man' etc there will be an enhanced audience of women who want to know how men react to the art of the kiss. Grady Harp, July 12

This is an enjoyable book showing that male love can be strong and affectionate at the same time. Also in various vignettes.

I wish the product description had said: includes nudity. I still would have purchased the book, but I think it's important to explicitly state there are nude photos, not just "from sensual and erotic to wild and debauched". Amazon, you should do better.Layout: Many of the photos are placed across two pages, which means a good chunk of the photo is lost in the fold of the book. It's hardly erotic to display what looks like a man's detached legs dangling over the edge of a bed.Diversity: You wish! Of the 260 photos, only about 20 appear to contain non-white men - that's less than 8 percent of the book! If that's something you care about, this book may not be for you. Even as a white man, I was disappointed.